Coolers

[lawnspecialties]

Is there anything comparable to a Yeti? I don't mind getting a Yeti but I know other brands are trying to copy the Yeti performance at a slightly better price.

Honestly, we're just tired of buying ice every day because it melts so fast in the coolers we have. I could put something like a Yeti Tundra 65 in the toy hauler full of ice and not have to worry about it for quite awhile.

If the Yeti is the best way to go, who has the best deals? Seems Yeti's are so in demand right now, nobody puts them on sale. They're like Honda generators. :B

[coolmom42]

I got a very very good cooler at Costco. $99.99, Igloo brand, all white, and very very similar to the pricey Igloo Yukon brand. It is excellent. I start out with big blue ice packs, and ice frozen in 1/2 gallon milk jugs. After 3 days it is barely melted.

One that is a HUGE help is to cover the entire cooler with something like an old comforter, especially if it will be sitting in the sun.

[Sport45]

Adding salt lowers the temperature and makes everything colder. But it won't make the ice last longer. Colder temperature in the cooler means a higher differential temperature to the outside and faster heat transfer to the inside.

I've never done it and wouldn't bother, but you could probably make ice last longer by covering everything in the cooler with a few inches of Ping-Pong balls. That would add a floating layer of insulation that's still pretty easy to reach (if not see) through. A few layers of big packing bubble would work too.

[fireman41]

Add salt to the water in the cooler in it will lower the freezing freezing point of the water and will help keep the ice a bit longer

[Sport45]

Travel in bear country?

Popular Mechanics Bear-Proof Cooler Test

Interesting that the Yeti seemed to have the worst insulating properties.

[scrapnread]

Another tip for keeping ice in the ice chest while camping: fill your cooler, stock with ice and then pour salt over the ice. I don't know why salt melts ice on your sidewalk and not in your cooler. But I know that years ago, when I filled the salad bar at the local restaurant, I iced around the containers and then salted the ice. It kept the ice from melting and in fact, fused the cubes together. This is what we do, especially when we go to the ocean dock and buy hundreds of pounds of tuna or salmon and need to transport them home several hours.

[Veebyes]

During our weekending boating days going to get more ice was not an option. Every weekend was the equivelant to a RV boondocking weekend as far as utilities & services went.

The boat had 2 small fridges but we seldom used them. Could not see the point in putting cold food in a hot fridge which was off all week.

Food was put into the food cooler frozen, along with 2 or 3 1/2gal block ice. The food cooler stayed below deck. Drink coolers, 1 for the beer the other everything else, each had 3 1/2gal ice blocks. Drinking water went onboard in a frozen state. When possible the drink coolers were consolodated down to 1 cooler.

As suggested, a towel, prefferably wet, inside ontop of whatever, helps to preserve cold. Also, know what you want before opening the cooler. No shopping.

[happybooker1]

I have a Igloo 5-Day or something like that. Anyway that's not important. What IS important is I read somewhere about using a "blanket" on top of the ice.

I used the Igloo during a 4-day trip in Central Texas in July. It was outside the whole time but in the shade. This was the cooler we kept our drinks in & I & 3 teen boys kept it opened up plenty. Temps were high 90's during the day & mid-70s at night.

Started with 3 bags of ice & about 30 cans/bottles of pop/water. I bought one of those accordion silver auto shades & cut it to fit tightly inside the cooler. We kept it pushed down on the ice & pop. We had to add warm pop as we drank the cold & added 1 more bag of ice on the 3rd day (morning).

When we got home on the 5th day we still had ice/cold water in the cooler. I will use the "blanket" from now on.

[garmp]

We have had the Gott, the Coleman Extreme and the Yeti. Although pricey, the Yeti is by far the best going, in our opinion. The draw back is the weight. We have a Yeti 65 & a 35. My DW & I, both retires seniors who love to camp have limitations and one large cooler was out of the question. With any cooler common sense prevails, pre-chill, keep full, and keep out of direct sunlight. With all this said and equal the Yeti is by far, in our opinion, the better product. Very pricey, but better. It's not a question of how much ice do I have to buy to pay for the cooler, but rather the security of knowing that purchasing ice isn't a daily necessity.

[NYCgrrl]

Veebyes wrote:
It is all about insulation & colour of the cooler. The thicker the insulation, better. The whiter the cooler, the better.

Trouble is, people buy on appearance rather than what works. A dark colour cooler is a waste of money. Insulation takes up cubic space. That 55qt outer shell coleman cooler is the same size as the 40 qt double insulated one.

Also what you use for ice matters. Crushed ice is gone in no time at all. Good for the afternoon. Cubed ice may work overnight. For 2 night weekends on the boat we used a couple 1/2 gal containers frozen. By the seconf morning most of the ice had melted but the cold water allowed to leak out kept things cool.

Where a cooler is kept also makes a huge difference. In the sun or with peoples butts sitting on them melts ice fast.

Good points although dinna know that colour was a factor; great to live and learn.

Pre-cooling your cooler (I just fill the cooler(s) with ice bags/frozen water the night before I leave) AND it's contents will also extend cooling as well using an insulated blanket. For long trips (over 1 week) I employ at least 2 coolers: 1 for beverages and the other food. For 2 week trips I use 3 coolers: 1 for bevs; 1 acts as a fridge and one as a freezer. Eliminating air pockets by using similar sized rectangular food containers and rectangular 1/2 gal. juice bottles turned into ice blocks is also useful. Recently discovered ice shards at a package/liquor store. Can't get them every where but they are MUCH better than cubes for slipping into nooks and crannies.

[Veebyes]

It is all about insulation & colour of the cooler. The thicker the insulation, better. The whiter the cooler, the better.

Trouble is, people buy on appearance rather than what works. A dark colour cooler is a waste of money. Insulation takes up cubic space. That 55qt outer shell coleman cooler is the same size as the 40 qt double insulated one.

Also what you use for ice matters. Crushed ice is gone in no time at all. Good for the afternoon. Cubed ice may work overnight. For 2 night weekends on the boat we used a couple 1/2 gal containers frozen. By the seconf morning most of the ice had melted but the cold water allowed to leak out kept things cool.

Where a cooler is kept also makes a huge difference. In the sun or with peoples butts sitting on them melts ice fast.

[NYCgrrl]

I've 3 different coolers by 2 different manufacturers: Coleman and Igloo. All claim to be extended days coolers but for my money and sight only 2 of them live anywhere near the claim.

1. Igloo's 62 qt. Maxi-Cold purchased at Costco at a closout price of approx. 30.00

Advantages: taller than most coolers which means it's easy to store opened bottles of wine or some mini beer kegs. I use it as my beverage cooler based on the height attribute. I can keep ice in it for 3 days w/o adding more.

Disadvantage: bad placement of drain plug. The drain is located behind the wide side where the wheel wells are. There is no slope/trough to allow easy drainage so you have to lift it and put something under one end to create your own slope.
The luggage handle doesn't "feel" as if it'll take the weight of a fully stocked cooler so I NEVER bother to use it. Which is inconvenient considering there are no handles on the wide side and only molded handle grips on the short sides.

Doesn't close as solidly as other coolers. You have to double check that it's closed or bungee cord it.

2. Coleman 5 Day Extreme 100 qt purchased on sale at Cabela's for approx. 70 bucks.

Advantages: Sloped channel to drain plug. Actually does keep ice for 5 days and sometimes 6 depending on the weather. 2 styles of handles located in the natural place- short sides. Easy to tell if it's closed properly by sight and sound. Cooler can readily be divided by using a

Disadvantages: Although it has two wheels on one short side it doesn't pull well on uneven terrain. I tend to carry it using the pull up smaller handles which fit the hands of most anyone, male or female.

3. Coleman 6 Day Extreme 60-70 qt(don't 'member).Paid around $25.00, used, via CL

All the attributes and disadvantages of the 5 day Coleman plus an extra day or two of ice beyond the listed 6 days. Oh and no "space hog" wheel wells since it has no wheels.

I would gladly purchase the Coleman Extreme line again but the Igloo line, not really. I don't care about the plastic hinges since when they break it'll be easy enough to replace w/ stainless steel ones. So far the plastic ones have lasted me for 5+ years.

I will prolly purchase an Engel or Pelican(?) someday as an add on freezer cooler but haven't felt the need to date.

[JEBar]

three years ago we spent a good deal of time and effort researching coolers .... there are several good brands out there, all of the really good ones are expensive .... we spend the summer in South Dakota where we have access to some of the finest steaks on the planet .... over the years we have shared them with friends who asked us to bring back some for them .... when we got home two days ago, after 3+ weeks on the road we had over a thousand of dollars worth of steaks in our Yeti Tundra 160 .... it is mounted on a carrier on the back of our camper so it is exposed 24/7 .... starting with it precooled, we added the steaks and filled it with ice .... that was the last time we had to buy ice .... our small ice maker we use in the camper was able to provide us with all of the replacement ice needed .... can you buy cheaper, yep .... can you buy better, I don't think so

Jim

[biggrigg]

Here is a test for some nice coolers. It has probably been posted before. It may have been posted in this thread. I didn't read it to closely.
Cooler Test

[lawnspecialties]

I stopped by Gander Mountain yesterday. I knew they carried quite a few Yeti's and their own Gander Mountain PermaChills. After talking with the guy and looking into them, I went with the PermaChill 120L.

The Yetis are awesome. But they are so thick, you lose a lot of inside space. The PermaChills are made of the same material but not quite as thick. What I lose in keeping cool, I gained in inside space for less money.

We have a race this weekend and doing something extra for the church service. So right now, the PermaChill is already in the toy hauler with 140 cans of various Cokes and completely covered in ice. Let's see how it looks by Sunday morning.